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On Monday, the Maxwell Football Club announced that sophomore quarterback DJ Lagway will enter the 2025 season on the Maxwell Award watch list. The Maxwell Award, which honors the most outstanding player in college football each year, stands as one of the sport’s highest individual achievements.
https://twitter.com/GatorsFB/status/1949902967001534726
The Maxwell Football Club has presented this award since 1937, naming it after Robert “Tiny” Maxwell—an influential figure who helped shape the perception of the sport as a player, sportswriter, and football official.
Freshman Phenom
Lagway had a strong freshman campaign—playing in 12 games, throwing for 1,915 yards, a 12-to-9 touchdown-to-interception ratio, and completing 59.9% of his passes. As a starter, Lagway went 6-1 with his only loss coming against Georgia. He exited that game in the first half due to a hamstring injury while the Gators led 7-3. After starting the season with a 3-3 record, he helped the Gators finish 8-5, topping it off with a Gasparilla Bowl victory over Tulane, earning MVP honors for the game.
After his freshman season, Lagway swept six freshman All-American awards from various outlets and earned the title of CFN Freshman Quarterback of the Year.
He now aims to join former Heisman Trophy-winning Florida quarterbacks Danny Wuerffel and Tim Tebow as the third Gator ever to win this prestigious award. Wuerffel claimed the Maxwell in 1996, while Tebow captured it in both 2007 and 2008. Ironically, the Gators capped both the ’96 and ’08 seasons with national championships.
The Maxwell Football Club will narrow the full list of 80 players to a group of semifinalists on Nov. 11, 2025. Two weeks later, three finalists will be announced on Nov. 25, 2025, before the winner is named on Dec. 11, 2025, at the College Football Awards Show. A committee from Pro Football Focus (PFF) and Phil Steele Publications—partners of the Maxwell Football Club—will vote to determine the winner.
